I Went to Gov Ball… What About It?

Music has been a big part of my life for as long as I can remember. My father taught me all I know about my taste in music. I listen to everything from classic rock to Beethoven. Music is an escape; it is an emotion. After college, I hope I can write about music and photograph concerts. Seeing artists live is something I encourage everyone to experience. You’re able to truly see them in their element. Specifically, music festivals are one of the best ways to not only see artists, eat great food and meet new people, but they’re also a way to see new, up-and-coming musicians.

Recently, I was able to attend the Governors Ball Music Festival at City field. Gov Ball is a three-day festival with about four stages. There are two performers going on at a time all throughout the day. The headliners this year included Billie Eilish on Friday, A$AP Rocky on Saturday and Post Malone on Sunday.

Billie Eilish had an hour and 15-minute set that ended with her most recent single, “Happier Than Ever.” The city of New York had great energy, and her ability to move a crowd really grew my love for her as an artist and a person.

A$AP had an hour set that began with him crowd surfing. I started listening to him in high school, but I was never a true fan of his music. Seeing him in person truly changed my view of his music. He is a fun performer and knows how to engage with his audience. My favorite song by A$AP is L$D, which he did end up performing.

Post Malone’s set was one of my favorites of the entire weekend. He had guest performances with 21 Savage, Young Thug and Roddie Rich. 21 Savage came in for his feature of “Rockstar” and Young Thug came for his feature of “Goodbyes.” 21 and Young Thug were performing at Gov Ball this year as well. 21 came on stage and performed before Post, and Young Thug was performing on another stage. Roddie Rich came out for a special guest performance of his most popular song, “The Box.” My friends and I camped out for six hours prior to Post Malone’s performance so we would get good spots, and in the end, it paid off.

Other than the headliners who closed out the days, bands such as Laundry Day and Bleachers were two performances I was most excited to see. I am a big fan of alternative rock and punk. If you are interested in those two genres of music, I highly suggest looking into their music.

Laundry Day is a very vibey group that has songs perfect for car rides with the windows down. Their pop-rock music is available on all major music streaming platforms. I had the opportunity to meet the bass player of Laundry Day, Henry Pearl, which was insane.

Bleachers is an alternative indie pop rock band from New Jersey with an early 80’s vibe. They incorporate not only the keyboard into their music, but the saxophone as well. Nowadays, we don’t hear a lot of music like this. If I had to compare Bleachers to another popular band, it’d be a group like Imagine Dragons. The group mainly revolves around their lead singer, Jack Antonoff, who truly knows how to get a crowd moving.

The Governors Ball is an event that I have been attending every year since 2019. I cannot wait to attend next year, and hopefully in the future, I’d like to get a media pass and experience more of the artistry behind the festival itself.

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Assistant Arts and Entertainment Editor

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